Indian folk instrument maker Ustad Lalu Khan speaks to SURGAATHA (सुरगाथा) about the making of Kamacha.
For ordering any of the instruments, please write to : surgaatha@gamil.com
Besides Kamacha, Ustad Lalu Khan makes several musical instruments like Sindhi Sarangi, Surmandal, Khadtal and more.
Based in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, Ustad Lalu Khan can be contacted at: +91 9783178491.
Indian folk instrument - Kamacha or Kamaicha
The Kamacha connects the Indian sub-continent to western Asia and even Africa. In fact, it is the oldest bowed instrument in world literature, barring, perhaps, the Ravanahatta.
The Kamacha was known in Egypt and in Sind from the 10th century AD. The commonly accepted idea is that its name is derivable from the Arabic-Persian word 'kaman' or bow. It is a moot point, though, whether it went from Sindi in the Indian sub-continent to west Asia and Egypt or vice versa, as was the ancient 'kamancha' similar in shape, size and the mode of playing to our 'kamaicha'.
The Kamacha now found in our country is a bowed lute of Manganiyar people of west Rajasthan which borders on the Sind province, now in Pakistan.
The whole instrument is one piece of wood, the spehrical bowl extending into a neck and fingerboard; the resonator is covered with leather and the upper portion with wood. There are four strings which are the main ones and there a number of subsidiary ones passing over a thin bridge.
~ Dr. B C Deva
5 май 2016
